NEW RICHMOND, Ohio — The financial future of the New Richmond Exempted Village School District is in the hands of residents.
On May 5, voters will decide on an 8-mill levy that would last five years. District officials said the levy would be an extra $280 per $100,000 of the assessed home value.
In December 2025, the district submitted its fiscal precaution plan, following voters' rejection of an income tax levy.
The district is still feeling the impact of the closure of two major power plants. In 2014, the Beckjord plant closed, and the Zimmer plant closed in 2022, shrinking the district's revenue.
“Those both accounted for about 37% of the total revenue that was generated here in the school district," Superintendent Paul Daniels said in October.
WATCH: Residents share their thoughts on the upcoming levy vote
Two Village of New Richmond residents, Alex Spivak and Steve Williams, shared their thoughts on the proposed property tax increase for the school district.
"If there's a plan for it and it's clearly laid out and they follow through with it and people can support it, I'm certainly for it," Spivak said.
Williams, who's both a resident and a parent of a current district student, said he still needs to be convinced to vote to approve the levy.
“If they can show me a line-by-line that they are spending the money in a proper manner, they may be able to get me to vote yes," Williams said.
I brought that concern directly to the district treasurer and chief financial officer, Brett Floyd.
“I would be open to a meeting with (Williams) and going through it to that level of detail," Floyd said. "They just need to reach out. But for a more digestible version of said numbers, our five-year forecast is really the best way to look at that."
Back in January, the district confirmed the plan included a $300 pay-to-play fee for sports. That fee would have been per student and per sport with no family cap.
But now, Floyd told me leaders had revisited the idea and do not have a set number at this time. He said the numbers reported in the district's updated February forecast of finances could cause plans to change.
Other changes coming to the 2026-27 school year include a reduction of five teaching positions, most through retirements.
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“We are not scaling back on any of the reductions in the plan that was filed, regardless of whether this passes in May or not," Floyd said.
I asked Floyd how the vote in May will impact the district moving forward.
“What people decide in May is they’re really telling us what they want the future of the district to look like, and we'll respect that and move accordingly," Floyd said.
The district hosted a community forum Tuesday evening at New Richmond High School to discuss the property tax levy. For those who were unable to attend, district officials encourage people to submit their questions to this online forum.
